Scandinavian Design Studios - N&S, Bleed, and Knox

When I was doing some research for OUGD505 looking at WWF Apps, I found that most of them had very little design put into them apart from a Norwegian one which (I think) was a guide to sustainable fishing. Other apps I looked at were from India, Hong Kong, Poland and Germany.

Bleed - Norway

Bleed's manifesto starts off with "Be Different", citing Einstein's suggestion that doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results is insanity. Something I've disliked about the Scandinavia and Swiss design styles is that it tends to be very similar, so the fact that Bleed make a point of varying their work is something I respect. I think this very much reflected in their website, which looks like it has messy hand-drawn text on it. They also quote Picasso, "I'm always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it". I think these two quotes are reflected in the work they do, with examples below. That said, I do think their website is a bit difficult to navigate, which is a downside of this philosophy and style.

Studio Knox - Sweden

Knox was founded by Scottish designer Chris Knox, and works by the philosophy that design should be innovative, sustainable and user-centred. They did some work that I thought was really nice explaining Stockholm's green credentials, and that really backs up how they try to work to that ethos, but there are also other examples which I see as just generic hipster contemporary design which is just text laid over big images and various blocks of colour laid over each other in different transparencies. I do think that some of there work does somewhat highlight my issues with Scandinavian design. That said, I do like their website a lot and it's very user-friendly.

Nordenswan & Siirila - Finland

N&S are a design company that specialise in corporate identity and like to work primarily print-based. They pride themselves on their creativity, craftsmanship and personalities. Given this, I think their website does a really good job of communicating this as it gives off a positive feeling because of the bright yellow and smiling faces. I really like the look of this studio, as all their work really reflects everything they say on their website, and their isn't much needless cringy rhetoric like their often is when studios describe themselves.